Engineers from Ukraine are receiving training from specialized British military bomb disposal teams to clear Russian minefields.
As the world’s most heavily mined nation, Ukraine is currently making slower military progress. Ukraine expressly requested the British Army sappers, or combat engineers, training because some of them had comparable challenges in Afghanistan.
The Polish military base where the training has been taking place has just recently been visited by the BBC.
Like Denys, the majority of Ukrainian engineers have already gained expertise and are battle-tested.
The day after the full-scale Russian invasion started in February 2022, he offered to fight. He hasn’t left Ukraine since 2021, and this quick trip to Poland marks the first time in almost two years that he has witnessed passenger aircraft passing overhead.
The most hazardous job in the world, according to Denys, is explosive ordnance disposal (EOD). He declares, “We need more sappers; we don’t have enough of them.”
I enquire if he has lost any buddies while performing this risky task. He nods while his eyes start to tear up.
Although he thanks his British friends for their assistance, he asserts that Ukraine still needs more equipment and support from the West in order to clear the Russian minefields. He claims, “We can’t do it on our own.”
The mines that have already been laid, according to Denys, would take hundreds of years to clean even if the conflict ended tomorrow.
On an industrial scale, Russia has begun setting mines in Ukraine.
The minefields can be as deep as 10km (6.2 miles), and they are currently dispersed throughout an area the size of Florida. Five bombs can fit inside just one square meter.
The tiny UK training team has buried and booby-trapped more than 20 dummy devices at the Polish military camp. As the course draws to a close, the British EOD experts from the 35 Engineer Regiment are evaluating the Ukrainians’ abilities.
Large cylindrical anti-tank mines, smaller anti-personnel mines, bounding mines, which emerge from the earth and scatter shrapnel over a wide area, and grenades attached to trip wires are just a few of the weapons they’ve concealed.
The small butterfly mines that are intended to maim, others that are activated by vibration rather than direct contact, and mines that can turn themselves on and off to escape detection are among others that are not on show.
These weapons, which are currently one of the main causes of casualties and injuries in Ukraine, have had decades to be planned, manufactured, and prepared by Russia.
Ihor, a four-year sapper, claims that his team has already lost more than ten members. One team of sappers, according to him, might have to handle more than 100 devices each day. Additionally, they frequently have to clear areas that are still vulnerable to Russian artillery and small-arms fire.
One of the causes for why they operate primarily at night is this.
Russian forces are also purposefully targeting Ukrainian sappers to halt their advance.
“We have to take bigger chances as we grow. Ihor explains, “We don’t always have time to check to determine if the mines are booby trapped.
According to Staff Sgt. Kevin Engstrom, the British are instructing the Ukrainians in the gold standard of mine clearance, which takes time and patience. But, he argues, “you can’t always be slow and methodical if your immediate threat is gunfire.”
Similar to Afghanistan, the threat is changing.
According to Denys, finding dead Russian soldiers who were booby-trapped in areas that had been liberated is now commonplace. To produce more powerful explosions, Russia has begun piling anti-tank mines on top of one another.
To set off the larger explosive, smaller anti-personnel mines are also stacked on top of vehicle mines. In the vegetation, trip wires are frequently concealed.
Additionally, the Russians now hang them from trees with connected hooks in an effort to seize the uniforms and equipment of advancing soldiers.
It can take time and effort to clear a way through these dangerous hidden traps. To clear a route, the Ukrainian sappers first utilize Vallons, which resemble metal detectors.
1,500 of them have already been given to Ukraine by Britain. The sappers descend on their knees and stomachs to assess the danger when the Vallon cries. Working by hand can be arduous.
Denys observes the ants crawling across the ground before noticing a trip wire. He giggles, “You guys make it hard.
The British coaches all praise the Ukrainians’ speed. They move quickly. I was tardy during my initial deployment to Afghanistan. They hardly miss anything, claims Staff Sgt. Engstrom. He continues, saying that with the equipment they have, their job is outstanding.
The biggest difficulty is not making the device secure. Ihor claims that prior to the invasion, he was already familiar with the kinds of mines that the Russians employ. Mines can be easily disarmed, but the Russians are making it harder.
The British teachers compare it to figuring out a problem or playing chess.
Finding the minefields and understanding why they were put there is the true issue. It’s frequently done on purpose to attract troops that artillery can then target.
Mines frequently contain booby traps. The tiny British training squad in Poland is under the command of Capt. Chris Wilson, who believes that the ideal candidate for Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Search is “slow and methodical, who can think and understand problem-solving while maintaining their composure.”
This training just got underway in November. Each school lasts only a few weeks and consists of a small group of skilled Ukrainian sappers. That demonstrates the strong need for them to return to the front lines.
They might have managed to get past the first Russian defense lines in Southern Ukraine. But more trenches, dragon teeth, and minefields in Russia stand in their way.
Ihor and his group of sappers are aware of the enormous task still before them. But, he claims, they are powerless.
We will undoubtedly lose more men in the process, but we must proceed.
The British instructors are at least hoping that some Ukrainian lives may be saved by this instruction.